Was reading an article today with regard to browser security, comparing Firefox and Internet Explorer. After processing the piece, I felt compelled to clarify some things: First of all, any browser can be dangerous, it depends on what you do with it as to how safe your PC is. Having said this, we also need to look at the current threats vs ‘potential exploits’ that have yet to ever really cause an ongoing problem for people. Firefox is simply never targeted with much, regardless of why, the fact remains. That’s not to say that they won’t be as their popularity grows.

For instance, while ActiveX tends to receive a lot of the grief with regard to security problems when being used in conjunction with IE. Then we have Java enabled by default in Firefox. Don’t think for a second that you can not be hit by some form of nasty here. There is plenty of Java-powered spyware out there that we need to be aware of.

So are we just out of luck? Should we just go back to IE and forget it or vice versa? No, just make sure whatever browser you choose to use is properly secured. Although, I might add that by keeping Firefox updated and Java turned off, you are not going to have many problems - potential exploits or otherwise. Can I say the same for IE? Potentially. However there is an old saying that I like to live by: Once bitten, twice shy. Just a little something to ponder over the weekend. See you all Monday!

[tags]firefox,spyware,java,activex,ie,exploit[/tags]